Circle, Full Circle Prologue
by vandevere
Summary: One man's life...another man's warning...
1. Chapter 1

**Circle, Full Circle**

 _NYC, 1989_

Two bullets to the chest, a routine traffic stop gone bad…

EMTs doing their best to keep a dying Rookie Cop alive, pumping oxygen into his lungs, keeping precious brain cells alive as they fought to restart his heart…

It was wrong, what everyone said about your life flashing in front of you. It wasn't the life Rick Stetler had already lived that he saw. It was what he _hadn't_ lived yet that he saw.

A life of disappointment and shattered dreams; two ex-wives, and a slow slide into corruption.

And crime…

… _Eric Delko, dark eyes accusing…_

" _All of these years, Stetler, you were trying to pin something on one of us._ _ **You**_ _were the dirty one. Stealing evidence…cars, drugs, diamonds…_

 _Rick Stetler, frozen knows only one thing. It's over…_

" _It started with one car," he finally says. "One stupid car. Carmichael…He took a Porsche out of Impound for a case. Carmichael disappeared. Nobody cares…nobody notices. Hundred thousand dollar car…gone. Hundred thousand dollars… That stuff just sits in Asset Forfeiture, just…forgotten. So I made a trip to Impound…"_

" _That's where you got the car for the bombing, right?" Delko asks._

 _Stetler sighs, pinches the bridge of his nose._

" _The diamonds…" he says, at last. "They were going to be it. I just needed a few more weeks, because I couldn't let all those years of work go to waste."_

 _Horatio Caine stirs, censure in his eyes._

" _You planted the diamonds in Wolfe's apartment to buy time," he says. "But that is all…"_

" _Twenty years," Stetler looks at him. "I gave my life for this? I've got high blood pressure, two ex-wives, and a pension that ain't worth spit."_

" _We all do," Caine cuts him off. "That's the nature of the sacrifice."_

 _Pure fury jolts through Stetler._

" _Cut the self-righteousness, Horatio," he snaps. "You know, better than anyone, that this place chews…you…up. What're you gonna get at the end, Horatio? You're gonna get an Exit Interview, and a cheap watch. So I stole from some thieves. Big deal…"_

" _Rebecca Nevis was one of_ _ **us**_ _," Horatio Caine matches Stetler glare for glare. "And you had her killed."_

 _Hauled to his feet, wrists pulled behind his back, handcuffs snapping shut. Then…_

 _Everything goes away in a blinding flash of light…_

HR

"He's back!"

It's too bright, too loud, the wail of sirens dominating everything. Rick Stetler can't move his arms or legs, and everything… _everything_ , hurts. There's a mask over his face, covering nose and mouth, and he can hear the rasp of his own breathing in his ears. An EMT looms over, says something, but Stetler can't hear him over the roaring in his head.

A blink later, and its Officer Horatio Caine bending over him, red hair a brilliant halo.

"Easy, Rick," he lays a hand on Stetler's forehead. "We're almost at the hospital. Hang on, you'll be fine."

Officer Caine's face blurs into brilliant haze…

HR

Officer Horatio Caine was right…

Officer Rick Stetler made a complete recovery from his near-fatal shooting, was out of the hospital in less than two weeks.

He told no one about that… _dream._

Not even the Mandatory Psychologist he'd had to see before being allowed back to work.

Stetler had been clinically dead-no pulse, no respiration-for about five minutes, and in those five minutes, he had lived an entire life.

It had felt so… _real_

Was it?

Was it real?

Was it a warning?

All Rick Stetler knew was that he would do whatever it took to keep… _that_ …from happening.

It was his life at stake, his _soul…_


	2. Chapter 2

Circle, Full Circle

Chapter 1

 _Miami, Florida, 2010_

He hadn't been able to change as much as he might have liked…

Of course, Rick Stetler had been able to make changes to his own life; but that meant opting for a more lonely life right from the start. He had never married, so no ex-wives.

But he still wound up in Internal Affairs, in Miami, Florida.

The other changes he had been able to make were-with one major exception-on the minimal side; more a matter of attitude than anything else.

The CSIs, by and large, still pretty much despised him. Horatio Caine, at least, understood what Stetler was trying to do, even if he didn't know _why_ …

The _dream_ he'd had so long ago.

 _Twenty years…_

Stetler had been living with that for twenty years now, and it still felt like a blue print-what to do, what _not_ to do.

But, in spite of what Stetler had done-or not done-over these last several years, this last month seemed bound and determined to progress _exactly_ as it had in his dream so long ago.

 _Diamonds…_

The same exact diamonds, stolen in the same exact robbery, had gone missing in the same exact way; and the only thing Rick Stetler could be certain of was that the person responsible was _not_ the same exact person it had been before…

History was repeating itself; but with different participants…

Speaking of which…

There was State Attorney Rebecca Nevins, down in Impound, glaring at a car.

 _That_ car. Stetler recognized it. In another life he had put a bomb in it…

"What's wrong?" he asked her.

"Car won't start," Nevins continued to glare at the car. "And I have an appointment that won't wait…"

 _If history keeps on repeating like it has this month, then that would be Eric Delko…_

"Let me look," Carefully, Stetler opened the hood. He wasn't an expert in car bombs; or car maintenance either, but his memories-from his _other self_ -showed him what to look for. His heart sank when he found it.

"Is it bad?" Nevins asked.

Stetler came to a quick decision.

 _She doesn't have time to go looking for another car, and we don't want anyone knowing she's using a different car anyway. Safer for her if_ _ **they**_ _, whoever they are, don't know…_

He sighed as he closed the hood, fished in his pocket for his car keys.

"Why don't you borrow mine?"

* * *

CSI Walter Simmons parked the van just outside Impound. The call he had received-from Lieutenant Stetler, no less-had been urgent.

 _A car, rigged to explode, found in Impound…_

The Bomb Squad had already done their thing. Fortunately, they had been able to disarm the thing, so there was evidence, and trace, to be processed.

Stetler was there, staring out at nothing, a million miles away…

"Uh…Lieutenant?"

The man jerked, as if scalded.

"CSI Simmons," he seemed to recollect himself. "We have a bit of a situation…"

"Yeah…" Simmons nodded. "Why don't we get this…situation…back to the labs; see what it has to tell us."

Now Simmons and Stetler were both in the lab, staring down at pieces of the device, scattered across the table.

"Anything I can do?" Stetler had asked.

"Yeah…" Simmons replied. "Put some gloves on and start dusting for prints."

A phone rang a few minutes later.

"Yours', I think," Stetler continued his meticulous dusting as Simmons stripped off his gloves and picked up his cell phone.

* * *

Through all of this, Rick Stetler had felt profound exhilaration.

 _I saved Rebecca Nevins…_

That put his current tally of saved lives up to two…

Although neither recipient would ever know their lives had been saved.

But Rick Stetler knew, and that was enough…

Then Walter Simmons' cell phone rang…

"Yeah…H?"

 _Horatio Caine…_

Most of his people called him _H_ …

The big man stood there, phone to ear. Then he swung his gaze back to Stetler.

"He's _here_ , H, with me…Yeah…I'm looking at him right now…Yeah…I'll do that."

He put his phone down, looking grim.

"Horatio called," Simmons explained. "Your car…it exploded."

"My…car..?"

 _But I saved her…_

"I have to…"

Stetler turned…to leave…to do…he had no idea what to do…

Simmons grabbed his arm.

"Horatio wants you to stay here," he said. "He'll tell you everything when he gets here."

It didn't take long for Horatio Caine-followed by CSIs Speedle, Delko, and Duquesne-to arrive. Eric and Calleigh both looked somewhat the worse for wear…

 _They were both there when it blew…_

"State Attorney Nevins?" Stetler asked.

"She's dead," Delko spoke bluntly.

Stetler closed his eyes briefly.

 _I should have done more…_

"We're bringing your car to the labs," Horatio Caine's voice brought him back. "And, Rick? As of now, you're in protective custody."

"Protective custody?" Stetler's voice cracked a little. "Are…you… _kidding?"_

"Whoever rigged your car had no reason to think you would loan it to anyone else," Caine's eyes bored into him. "That bomb was meant for _you_ , Rick."


	3. Chapter 3

Circle, Full Circle

Chapter 3

Rick Stetler found himself in Horatio Caine's office, feeling oddly passive as Caine argued with IAB Captain, Eli Cuthbert.

 _Arguing over who has the right to protect me…_

The irony was rich beyond compare…

CSI Tim Speedle was standing by a wall, keeping quiet, watching intently.

"How many people do you think would like to see Rick Stetler dead?" Cuthbert asked Caine.

"Quite a few, I'd imagine, Eli."

"Including at least one of your own people, Caine. Ryan Wolfe has no reason to be fond of Stetler."

"Neither does Cal McGuire," Caine pointed out. "He and Rick were both up for the same promotion. Rick got it, and Cal was…pretty vocal about his disappointment. Also…we have _two_ rigged cars to deal with; Rick's car, and the one Attorney Nevins was originally supposed to drive. This could be larger than just one disaffected officer trying to kill Rick Stetler.

"Then _investigate_ it, Horatio. I'm taking Rick to a safe house.

"Excuse me," Stetler stood, and both men turned to him.

"I…uh…have a vested interest in how this all turns out," he said. "Don't cut me out of this, Eli…"

"You sure, Rick?" Cuthbert regarded him gravely. "If you hadn't loaned your car to Nevins, it would've been _you_ lying on that slab in the Morgue; and there's the possibility that the culprit might be one of Caine's own people."

"Along with about three quarters of the entire police force," Stetler said. "But that's what I get for being IAB. I don't want to be sidelined, Eli. And there's no one I trust more than Horatio Caine."

"You sure about this, Rick?"

"Absolutely."

Cuthbert grunted, turned to Caine.

"You'll keep an eye on him?"

"I won't let him come to any harm, Eli."

Horatio Caine made it sound like a Holy Oath…

Cuthbert swung his gaze, from Caine, to Speedle, then back to Stetler.

"All right," he finally said. "Keep me updated, Cain. I don't like it when the lives of my people are threatened."

"Neither do I," Caine assured him. "And I will do everything in my power to erase that threat. Permanently."

"Even if it turns out to be one of your own people?"

"Even if," Caine nodded. "Even if…"

Cuthbert nodded too, apparently satisfied.

"If you change your mind, Rick," he said. "Call me…"

"Yes," Stetler nodded.

Cuthbert turned to leave, leveling one more piercing glance at Caine. Then, he was gone.

Horatio Caine stood a moment, deep in thought. Then, he let out a breath.

"Okay…" he said. "We need to talk, Rick. Either you've been running an investigation so secret even Cuthbert doesn't know about it, or something is seriously out of whack. How did you even _know_ Nevins' car was rigged in the first place? You're not a bomb specialist, and Walter told me the device would have been difficult to find; even for a specialist. So, how did you know, Rick? Who is your source?"

Stetler just looked back at him, unsure of what to say.

 _He'll think I'm insane…over the bend…_

"Rick…" Caine pressed; and Stetler closed his eyes.

 _Nothing for it but to tell the truth…_

"Remember when I got shot?" he opened his eyes again. "Back in Eighty-nine?"

"Yeah, Rick. I was there."

"You're gonna think I've lost it," Stetler said. "But I swear this is the truth. I died that day…The EMTs brought me back. But for five minutes I was dead. No pulse. No respiration."

"I remember that too, Rick…"

Stetler nodded, and continued his tale…

"In those five minutes…I lived an entire life, and I did things…"

It was hard to say it; hard to admit it.

"I did bad things, Horatio…terrible things."

"But you woke up, Rick," there was compassion in Caine's eyes and voice. "It was a dream. Nothing more."

"Then, why is the _exact same shit_ from my dream happening?"

"Rick…"

"No! Listen to me. The diamonds went missing in my dream too. And Rebecca Nevins…She died in my dream too, in an exploding car. But neither of those things should have happened _here_ , because I didn't do those things _here_."

"Rick, be careful here," Caine warned. " _What_ are you telling me? Did you have anything to do with the diamonds, or the rigged cars?"

Feeling utterly helpless, all Stetler could do was shrug…

"I don't know…"

"Rick…"

"I…don't…know!" Stetler exploded. "Horatio…I know what I did in the dream, and I know what I did _here_. _Those_ things shouldn't have happened here. I've spent my entire life trying to keep those things from happening here!"

There was a tense silence, broken by Tim Speedle clearing his throat…

"Uh…H?" there was hesitation in Speedle's voice. "Can we talk outside?"

Caine nodded, turned back to Stetler.

"This isn't finished, Rick," he said.

"I'm not going anywhere," Stetler couldn't keep the bitterness out of his voice…

* * *

Horatio Caine followed Tim Speedle out into the hall.

"Okay, Speed. What's bothering you?"

Speedle sighed.

"I know you're having trouble with what Stetler just told you. But it kinda makes sense…sort of…"

"Speed, Rick is saying he's lived two separate lives…"

"Yeah…" Speedle shrugged uncomfortably. "And I think I have proof he's telling the truth…"

"Proof?"

"Yeah…" now Speedle really felt uncomfortable as Caine focused on him.

"A few years back," Speedle continued. "You remember Tawny Williams?"

"Yes," Caine nodded. "Her husband had been killed, and her son kidnapped, by her ex-partner."

Speedle nodded.

"That was when Stetler just…dropped in on me; right out of the blue…

 _Right out of the blue, IAB Sergeant Rick Stetler walked in, watching Speedle as he worked on evidence for the current case._

" _What do you want, Stetler?" Speedle didn't even bother to look up as he spoke._

" _Your gun please."_

" _Huh?" now Speedle did look up._

" _Your gun," Stetler held out a hand. "Please."_

" _Just my gun? Not my badge too?"_

 _Stetler rolled his eyes at that._

" _No badge," he finally said. "Just your gun."_

 _Mutely, Speedle handed it over. Stetler inspected it carefully. Then, he snorted in disgust and left._

" _Hey! That's my gun Stetler! Where are you going with it?"_

" _Shooting Range. Follow me."_

 _Once there, Stetler put headphones on aimed at a target, squeezed the trigger twice. The gun went_ _ **click!**_ _Twice. But that was it._

 _Stetler gave Speedle a withering glare._

" _Use this in a gunfight, you'd be right up shit creek," he said. "This gun is_ _ **crap.**_ _"_

 _He reached into his pocket with his free hand, brought out a Requisition Form, handed it to Speedle._

 _Stetler had apparently done most of the legwork here; all the appropriate boxes checked off._

" _Sign your name on it, go to Requisitions, and get a gun that_ _ **works**_ _. And, Speed? From now on,_ _ **maintain**_ _your gun. Okay?"_

"We wound up in that gunfight later in the afternoon," Speedle continued the tale. "Stetler _knew_. Don't ask me how. But it's clear, to me at least. He saved my life that day."

Both he and Caine turned to look at Lieutenant Rick Stetler, who seemingly possessed a direct line to the Great Beyond…

Horatio Caine sighed, clearly not yet fully convinced. He walked back into his office, Speedle right behind.

"Speed says he believes you, Rick," he said.

Stetler nodded cautiously.

"You?" he asked.

"Provisionally," Caine replied. "So, right now, we need to go over this dream of yours. Tell me everything."


	4. Chapter 4

Circle, Full Circle

Lieutenant Horatio Caine sat there, in Holding. Lieutenant Rick Stetler, his tale finished, sat there too, head bowed, like a condemned man awaiting execution.

To Caine, at least, it sounded very much like an admission of guilt…

But…of _what?_

The two cars had to have been rigged, possibly by two different parties, and the diamonds…

Where did _those_ fit in?

"The diamonds…" Caine brought his gaze back to Stetler. "Do you know where they are?"

Stetler rubbed his face wearily with one hand.

"If it's the same as…before," he said. "They would be in Ryan Wolfe's place."

"Ryan Wolfe? He's no thief, Rick."

"I know!" Stetler snapped. "They were _planted_ there, by…"

He faltered, falling silent.

"Rick?" Horatio pressed as gently as he could.

"I don't know, Horatio…" the other man shrugged uncertainly. "I know Ryan Wolfe is innocent. But I don't know who planted the diamonds."

"In this dream of yours…"

"Yeah, Horatio. In my dream it was me. But it's not me _here_."

Caine didn't really know what to think, or believe here.

"Just have Eric Delko search Ryan Wolfe's place," Stetler continued. "He'll find them, and he'll find the evidence you need to clear Wolfe."

The certainty with which Stetler said this was a little frightening; and Caine had to wonder…

 _What is his mental state?_

This dream he'd apparently had all those years ago…

Well…A traumatic thing _had_ happened to Rick Stetler in Eighty-nine. Being clinically dead had to be perhaps every bit as traumatic than…say…bullet fragments lodged in the brain…

Eric Delko was doing fine now. But that was really due to all his team mates, including Caine himself, keeping a watchful eye out for him when he _had_ needed help.

Did Stetler have anything like that?

 _He does now,_ Caine vowed to himself.

He stood, took out his cell phone, and dialed a number.

"H?" Delko's voice came over the line.

"Eric. Meet me at Mr. Wolfe's place."

He turned back to Stetler.

"Rick…if you _are_ involved in this, I might not be able to help you."

"I know…"

"So, tell me, where in Ryan Wolfe's place will the diamonds be found?"

* * *

The next twenty-four hours had been…interesting.

The diamonds had been found-exactly where Rick Stetler had said they would be-and brought back for Eric Delko to test.

Wolfe had been…furious.

But, in the end, he had no reason for anger. Trace had proven-beyond any reasonable doubt-that Ryan Wolfe had nothing to do with the diamonds.

In Rick Stetler's case, the results were…ambiguous.

No fingerprints, or genetic material. But he knew where the diamonds had been stashed, and he had apparently known about Nevins' car too.

 _It's not looking good…_

"Where's Stetler?"

Caine looked up. There was IAB Sergeant Cal McGuire.

With Stetler implicated in this, _McGuire_ was the man Internal Affairs chose to send…

"McGuire," Horatio Caine didn't bother to hide his disdain for the man.

"Caine," the man nodded back. "Again, where is Stetler?"

"In Holding, Cal; where he's safe…"

" _Safe…"_ McGuire chuckled softly. "From others…maybe. But from _himself?_ I very much doubt that."

"What do you mean, Cal?"

McGuire snorted.

"I'm sure you've already seen it," he said. "But, Horatio? Stetler's…not right in the head. He's been… _off_ …this last year or so…"

"You had better not be implying what I _think_ you're implying," Cain spoke sternly. "That would be…ill-advised in the extreme."

"You think so? Get into his work computer, Horatio. Get a look at what he's been doing this past year."

"Cal…"

"He's been tracking people, _stalking_ them," McGuire spoke urgently. "Tim Speedle, Rebecca Nevins; and others. And-out of nowhere, he reopened a Cold Case, with absolutely no new evidence to justify it. Ever heard of Jeff Carmichael?"

"Carmichael…" Caine frowned. He _knew_ the name; tried to recall where, in what context…

"Undercover cop," McGuire explained. "Had a case in Ninety-Eight, or thereabouts. Took a car out of Impound; then…just disappeared into the Great Beyond. Dude's probably living in Mexico right now, and Stetler…No new evidence…no nothing, and he wants to reopen it, and do…what?"

He snorted again.

"Stetler's coming apart at the seams, Horatio; and you know that."

Caine stood there. He detested Cal McGuire. But the man's words had the ring of truth to them.

 _How did Rick know Nevins' car was rigged?_

That was the problem. Stetler's knowledge of the car, and the diamonds…

He had to be involved… _had_ to. He couldn't have known the things he knew otherwise…

 _I did bad things, Horatio…Terrible things…_

"He knew about the diamonds, didn't he?" McGuire's tone was almost mocking…

"Yes," Caine muttered unwillingly. "He knew…"

"Well…" McGuire shrugged. "There you go then…"

Caine sighed, closed his eyes.

"Yes," he muttered again. He walked back down to Holding, McGuire right behind; and it was the longest walk to Holding Caine had ever experienced.

Both Tim Speedle and Ryan Wolfe were in Holding with Stetler.

Caine looked at Stetler, really looked at him. Only now did he see what he had been missing all along…

Stetler looked _exhausted,_ haggard, shoulders slumped, eyes shadowed…

"Horatio?" Stetler's eyes flicked from McGuire, to Caine, and Caine sighed again.

 _He needs rest…not a prison cell…_

"I'm sorry, Rick…" he murmured. "Please stand…"

"H?" Speed looked more than a little confused.

Stetler nodded. Perhaps he had known what was coming. Slowly, he got to his feet.

Horatio Caine felt _helpless_ as McGuire cuffed Stetler's wrists, taking the time to properly Mirandize him, clearly savoring every minute of it. He turned to leave, and-to Caine-it all felt so… _wrong._

"Cal!" he called out. "Treat him gently, or you'll answer to me."

"Yeah…yeah…" McGuire herded his prize off the jail.

Behind him, Caine heard Ryan Wolfe snort.

"He's getting a taste of his own medicine," the young man said; and Caine felt a jolt of white-hot-fury.

He spun around, grabbed Wolfe by both shoulders, slammed him- _hard_ -against the wall.

"Stetler may have sacrificed… _everything_ ," he ground out, glaring into shocked, maybe even terrified, eyes. "His name, his reputation, his career, maybe even his _life_ ; and he did all of that for _you_ , Mr. Wolfe. So…show a little respect."

Then, still trembling with that sudden rage, he released Wolfe, turned and walked away.

"Wait up, H…" Speed caught up to him.

"This doesn't feel right," he said after a bit of silent walking.

"No…It doesn't," Caine agreed.

"So…what do you want us to do?"

"What we always do," Caine stopped as the fury drained away. "We do our jobs and find the _real_ culprits. _That_ is what we do…"


	5. Chapter 5

Circle, Full Circle

Rick Stetler was quite familiar with the process of booking a suspect; he'd done it himself countless times. He'd never experienced it from the other side, though; the surrendering of all personal items, including belt and necktie, standing against the wall, having his picture taken, the finger printing, all of the steps to virtually erase a man's personal dignity…

One small mercy…

When all of that was done, he had been given a cell in Solitary. Cops tended to meet with grave physical harm in cells with more than one occupant…

So, alone, Stetler lay back on the hard cot, stared up at the ceiling.

All of his efforts had proven so fruitless…

 _If I hadn't given Rebecca Nevins my car, she would still be alive…_

But, then…

 _He_ would have been dead.

Stetler sighed, looking up at the ceiling. Death would have been kinder than this.

Now, he was facing the same grim fate his _other self_ , the one from his dream, had faced…

* * *

Ryan Wolfe felt shaken, right down to his toes, Horatio Caine's words filling his mind…

 _Stetler may have sacrificed…_ _ **everything**_ _…_

"Hey…" Samantha Owens came up. "You okay?"

"Yeah…" Wolfe nodded shakily. "I'm fine."

Horatio Caine had called the whole team in, bringing out the big guns for this.

Eric Delko, Natalia Boa Vista, Walter Simmons, Tim Speedle, Samantha Owens, Calleigh Duquesne, and Ryan Wolfe himself. Even Detective Frank Tripp and Dr. Tom Loman were there…

"All right," Caine took command of his team. "Eric, you and Walter go over _everything_ in this case; Nevins' car, Rick's car, the diamonds…all of it. Tim, you and Ms. Boa Vista, get Rick's work computer from his office, and get his home computer too, see what's he's been up to lately. Get everything you can."

Everyone departed, to see to their respective assignments, and Caine turned to Wolfe.

"Mr. Wolfe," he said. "In my office, if you please."

Feeling uneasy, Wolfe followed Caine into his office, watching the Lieutenant carefully. Caine sighed, a long slow breath.

"Mr. Wolfe," he began. "I have a special assignment for you…"

"Uh…yes," Wolfe hesitated. "What do you want me to do?"

"A…thought experiment, Mr. Wolfe. I want you to look at all the evidence we have thus far, both written notes, and taped interviews; but I want you to look at it from the perspective that Rick Stetler is innocent."

Not quite what Wolfe was expecting to hear from his boss.

"Listen to the tapes and look at our notes," Caine repeated. "But tell yourself that Rick is innocent, and let the questions come to you from that angle."

It took several hours of reading and listening; but the notes, in Horatio Caine's own hand, and what Ryan Wolfe could hear in Stetler's voice during the… _interrogation_...conducted by Caine personally, were illuminating.

Wolfe tried to swallow past a lump in his throat.

 _Stetler knew I was innocent…He tried to clear me…_

The only reason Stetler failed to save Nevins was because he didn't know someone was also trying to kill _him…_

But that meant…

Wolfe looked up, saw Horatio Caine standing there, smiling slightly.

"You knew!" he accused the Lieutenant. "You knew Stetler was innocent; and someone was trying to frame him."

Caine nodded.

"Correct, Mr. Wolfe. You were probably just a convenient target. But, Rick…someone's going to great lengths to put Rick down. _Two_ someones, actually…"

"Two?"

"I believe so," Caine said. "No one could have predicted that Rick would lend his car to State Attorney Nevins; so whoever rigged Stetler's car might have no connection to the party responsible for rigging Nevins' car. She and Eric Delko were investigating the diamonds, and other things, and…someone…wanted her dead; and the only thing I can be certain of is that it wasn't Rick."

"Then…how did he get tangled up in this, H?" Wolfe asked.

"We'll know more when we've seen Rick's computers," Caine assured him. "For now, though, Rick needs someone in his court, a friend, someone to keep an eye on him. Think you could do that?"

* * *

"How goes it, Speed?" Horatio Caine asked his old friend.

"Better than I hoped," Tim Speedle said. He'd been able to call the jail where they were holding Stetler, gotten all relevant passwords from him personally. Now, both of Stetler's computers were wide open…

"Find anything Speed?"

"Yep," Speedle nodded. "Looks like McGuire was right. Stetler _has_ been tracking us; all of us."

Caine looked over his shoulder, staring at the monitor.

" _What_ was he trying to do?" he muttered softly.

"Well, we _know_ what he did with me," Speedle said. "He saved my life by replacing my gun. Maybe that was what he was trying to do with Attorney Nevins."

Caine frowned.

"So you think he can see the future? That he knows what's going to happen before it happens?"

"That _is_ exactly what Stetler's been telling us."

"But…how?"

Caine drummed his fingers on the table. He was obviously having trouble believing Stetler had Second Sight, or whatever the PSI experts called it nowadays…

Speedle shrugged.

"He was shot back in Eighty-nine?" he asked.

"Yes," Caine nodded. "Two bullets in the chest. Went into cardiac arrest in the ambulance; stopped breathing, the whole enchilada. The EMTs brought him back, but it took five minutes."

"Thing is, H, that people who experience _that_ have reported other strange stuff; out-of-body experiences, seeing long dead relatives and friends, seeing the Face of God…sometimes even seeing the possible pasts, or futures…"

Speedle paused.

"Maybe Stetler saw a possible future," he finally continued. "Whatever he saw, it frightened him so much that he would do literally anything in his power to change it, to keep it from happening…"

"Rick said, _I did bad things Horatio…terrible things_ ," Caine took a breath, let it out. "But he also said the same things from his dream were happening in reality."

"Maybe Stetler kept a journal of this dream he had while he was clinically dead, H," Speedle said. "If he did, it'll be on one of his computers, and H…we dusted both of them for prints. Apart from Stetler's prints, we also found Cal McGuire's prints too."

"Did you now?" Horatio Caine tilted his head slightly. "That's very interesting."

"Yeah…" Speedle nodded. "If Stetler kept any kind of journal, McGuire would have found it."

"Cal McGuire…" Caine said the name thoughtfully. "He was visibly angered when Rick got the promotion to Lieutenant. Maybe he did a little bit more than get angry. Maybe he decided to get even…"

* * *

"Stetler!" the rattling of keys on cell bars jolted Rick Stetler awake, sitting bolt upright, heart hammering in his chest.

"You've got a visitor," the guard said.

A visitor…

Stetler ran a hand through uncombed hair, straightening himself as best he could. Ryan Wolfe appeared, and it didn't look like he had come here to gloat…

"Horatio sent me down here to keep an eye on you," he smiled nervously. "Make sure you're all right. So…"

He paused, seemingly off-center.

"You okay?" he finally asked. "Need anything?"

Wolfe wasn't the only one feeling awkward.

"I'm fine, Mr. Wolfe…"

Wolfe cleared his throat after a minute's silence.

"I'm sorry," he said.

" _Sorry?_ " Stetler was completely baffled. "Whatever for?"

"When they arrested you," Wolfe swallowed. "I was kind of cheering inside, thinking, _at last, he's getting a taste of his own medicine._ I never even saw what was really going on with you…"

" _Ahh…"_ Now Stetler knew. "Horatio told you…"

"Yeah…" Wolfe looked shamefaced. "I read you all wrong…"

Stetler sighed.

"Not all that wrong…" he muttered softly.

 _In another life…_

In that other life he had done bad things; killed people, stolen property. But someone… _something_ …had given him a second chance, a chance to get it right.

And it had all gone so wrong, and here he was, possibly facing the same fate that _other_ Rick Stetler had faced. He knew how that _other Stetler_ had ended…

Facing Life Imprisonment, no hope of parole…

 _Suicide…_

Stetler felt chilled, down to his very bones…

 _I don't want to end like that…_


	6. Chapter 6

Circle, Full Circle

It was the ominous-sounding rumbling that brought Rick Stetler out of a fitful slumber. But, as he slowly sat up, shaking the last of a very unpleasant dream-one involving death by lethal injection-out of his head, he could still hear that odd rumbling sound.

 _Snoring…someone's snoring…_

Ryan Wolfe, out in the hall, sprawled awkwardly on the bench…the sounds coming out of his mouth would have awakened the dead…

"Ryan?"

Now it was Wolfe who jerked awake, almost falling off the bench.

"Uh…Stetler?" Wolfe sounded as groggy as Stetler felt. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, Ryan," Stetler sighed as he got to his feet. He stretched, feeling vertebrae pop as he worked the kinks out of his back and neck.

A door at the end of the hall opened, and three men walked in; a guard, IAB Captain Eli Cuthbert, and Cal McGuire. Cuthbert sighed as he surveyed Stetler. He looked grim.

"I'm sorry, Rick," he said. "With you implicated in all of this, I've been forced to take your badge. Cal's Lieutenant now. Again, I'm sorry."

Stetler nodded. It felt like he'd been stabbed through the heart, but Cuthbert really didn't have much choice here. At least _he_ had the grace to look shamefaced over it. McGuire, though…

McGuire looked _satisfied_ , like a cat in the cream bowl…

The two men left, and Ryan Wolfe's phone rang.

"H?"

 _Horatio Caine…_

"He's fine," Wolfe said. "Yeah…I'll tell him…"

"What does Horatio want?" Stetler asked.

"He wants us both back at the CSI labs." Wolfe put his phone away.

"He found something?"

"Don't know," Wolfe shrugged. "We'll find out when we get there…"

There was a process for taking an arrested suspect out of Holding, and Stetler knew the drill. He stepped back as the guard unlocked and opened the cell door. Wolfe walked in, handcuffs in hand, clearly feeling awkward about this…

Stetler sighed as he brought his wrists together in front, so Wolfe could…do his job.

"Sorry about this…" Wolfe's voice was barely audible.

* * *

Horatio looked his old… _frenemy_ …over. Rick Stetler looked like shit; wrists cuffed in front, unshaven, hair uncombed, rumpled clothes, no necktie or suit jacket.

"Gentlemen," Caine said. "Breakfast is on my desk."

It wasn't much; just coffee and egg muffins from the local fast food place.

"Thanks, Horatio," Stetler took a chair by the desk, reached for a sandwich…

Ryan Wolfe…wolfed…his sandwich down, telling Caine, between bites, about the visitors, and what Cuthbert had said…

Caine repressed a sigh.

 _Where is the loyalty and support? Who can Rick turn to when he needs help?_

Apparently no one in the _IAB_ …

 _Well…he has us now…_

"Rick," he said. "We may have uncovered some new evidence."

"I'd like to see it," Stetler was licking sandwich crumbs off his fingers. He had been hungry, it seemed…

"When our guest of honor arrives," Caine felt grim.

"Guest of…honor?" Stetler tilted his head questioningly.

"Don't worry," Caine picked up his own coffee. "He'll be here soon."

Now, they were all in the lab. Cal McGuire breezed in. He stopped dead when he saw Stetler.

"What's _he_ doing here?" McGuire demanded.

"He's here because he has a _right_ to be here," Caine spoke sternly. "He has a right to see the man who put him here. _You_ , Cal McGuire."

" _Me?"_

"That wide-eyed innocent look doesn't become you, Cal. I know you set Rick up."

McGuire laughed, shaking his head.

"Quite the imagination you've got there," he said. "Good luck proving that…"

Caine's phone rang…

* * *

Rick Stetler felt profoundly unsettled.

 _He set me up? How? He would have to have known…_

 _No…Not possible. It was my dream. No one else could have known…_

Then, Horatio Caine's phone rang…

"Eric…" Caine answered his phone. "Did you find it? Good…Bring everything here…"

He put his phone down, smiling, and Stetler knew that grim smile all too well…

"Cal…" Horatio was almost purring. "Why don't we listen to Miss Boa Vista?"

He stepped back to let Natalia Boa Vista take center stage.

"We dusted both of Stetler's computers for prints," she said. "Then, we looked inside. On his work pc, we found he had been keeping tabs on all of us; apparently for protective purposes, as Tim Speedle will attest. On his home computer, we also found…"

Here, she hesitated, looking at Stetler with worried eyes.

"Go ahead…" Stetler muttered. "It doesn't matter now anyway."

All of the secrets he had been holding on to were going to come out, and there was nothing he could do about that; except wait for the inevitable…

Natalia nodded, continued her tale…

"On his home computer, we found…an account of an alternate life; one where _he_ was the criminal. There were also notes there, reminders Stetler had left for himself; how to keep all the bad things…Rebecca Nevins' death…the missing diamonds…everything from happening."

"A disturbed mind," McGuire said. "The tragedy is that all this might have been avoided if he had only sought the help he so desperately needed."

"Miss Boa Vista isn't finished yet… _Lieutenant_."

There was a boatload of disdain in Horatio Caine's voice.

Stetler, listening to all of this, felt… _futility_.

 _I found the bomb in Rebecca Nevins' car. But she died anyway…_

Then Natalia Boa Vista dropped the bombshell…

"As I've already said, we've dusted both computers for prints, and Stetler's aren't the only prints we found. Cal McGuire, we also found _your_ prints too. On both computers."

Stetler froze into stillness.

"You…hacked…into my computers?"

"Of course not!" McGuire reassured him. "Caine's just trying to rattle our chains…"

"No chain rattling required," Caine looked up. "Eric is here. Let's see what he's found, shall we?"

Eric Delko strode in, followed by Walter Simmons, both men carrying a computer. McGuire scowled darkly.

"You had no right!" he hissed.

"Judge Harrow apparently disagrees with you, Cal. He signed the Search Warrant," Caine was purring again as he looked up at Delko.

"Did you find it, Eric?"

"Yeah…" Delko was smiling. "All of Stetler's notes, and his journal too, all on Cal McGuire's computers…"

He turned to Stetler.

"McGuire knew everything about this dream of yours," he said. "The plans you had made to keep it all from happening, the tabs you kept on all of us; and how you saved Tim Speedle. He _used_ your knowledge, Stetler. And his prints…they're not only on your computers. They're on the…device that you found in Rebecca Nevins' car, they're on the diamonds, and they're all over Ryan Wolfe's apartment. He did all of this to make your dream come true, _knowing_ you would step in, try to stop it, and get yourself implicated. It was never a prophetic dream. It was just Cal McGuire…taking advantage…"

Rick Stetler felt as if he had been punched in the chest. He literally couldn't breathe…

Cal McGuire stood there, smiling rigidly. Then, he sighed…

"Y'know, Rick…" he finally said. "There was this one time…you had stepped out of your office for a few minutes, left your pc unattended. I saw it…and just had to take a peek. I never realized just how… _nuts_ you are…Tracking errant CSIs and trying to save the world…So…I decided to break into your place and see what insanity was hidden in your home pc. Real eye-opener, that journal of yours…

Enveloped in a cone of shock, all Stetler could do was listen as Cal McGuire spoke.

"I realized how… _easy_ …it would all be. Just make it look like your dream was coming true. You would charge in, try to be the Big Damn Hero, get yourself discredited, and maybe even arrested. I'd make Lieutenant, and maybe even make a little extra cash on the side…"

Pure fury sizzled through Stetler. He didn't really feel himself move, hurling himself forward, still hand-cuffed hands going for McGuire's throat. He didn't feel other hands pull him away, prying fingers from the other man's neck, didn't feel strong arms wrap around him, trapping his arms, immobilizing him.

"Get Cal out of here!" Horatio Caine's voice seemed to come from very far away…

* * *

Ryan Wolfe was only too glad to send Cal McGuire off to Holding. It was done…

Rick Stetler had been cleared, but there was no joy to be had.

Stetler had virtually collapsed after Horatio had pulled him off McGuire.

Wolfe cast worried eyes in the direction of Caine's office.

 _He'll be okay…_ he told himself.

The man was sitting there, under Caine's watchful eyes, staring ahead, at nothing…

There was nothing Wolfe could do to help; except to solve the one remaining mystery.

 _Who rigged Stetler's car…Who killed Rebecca Nevins…_

Walter Simmons had managed to unravel the charred remains of the bomb trigger; a cell phone…

In spite of the charred status of the cell phone, Simmons had been able to retrieve the very last incoming call.

"The trigger that set the bomb off," he explained to Wolfe.

"Dial the number," Wolfe said, and Simmons nodded.

 _We owe Stetler that much…_

Simmons dialed the number. They both heard a ringing phone; and they both stared at each other.

"Here?" Simmons was wide-eyed. "One of us?"

Wolfe looked around, trying to locate the ringing, saw Samantha Owens busy on Trace, stop to pick up her phone, glancing briefly at the screen, shrug and put the phone down.

 _No…Not her…please…not her…_

He walked up to Owens, and her still-ringing phone.

"Aren't you going to answer that?"

"Don't know the number," she glanced briefly in Wolfe's direction. "If it's important, it'll go to Voicemail."

Wolfe laid a hand on her arm, cold anger icing his veins.

"Pick…it…up," he growled.

Frightened eyes looking up into his, Owens picked up her phone.

"H-hello..?"

Wolfe looked back at Walter Simmons. The big man, phone to ear, nodded, gave a thumbs-up, and Ryan Wolfe felt his heart break into a million pieces….

"You rigged Stetler's car… _why?_ "

Owens bowed her head, trembling.

"I did it for you," she muttered.

" _Me?"_

"Stetler was so over-bearing with you. He took your badge!"

"That was his _job!_ " Wolfe exploded. "I did something really dumb, got involved in things I shouldn't have, and I got caught…"

That hadn't been Wolfe's proudest moment…

"Stetler had no choice but to fire me," he continued. "But he was also the one who approved my reinstatement. It was his job, nothing more…"

Wolfe picked up his phone.

"I'm sorry," he muttered.

Owens stood there, eyes wide.

"Am I going to prison?"

Wolfe sighed.

"Yeah," he said. "You tried to kill a cop, and you did kill State Attorney Nevins. You're going away for a very long time…"

* * *

Rick Stetler felt numb…

Down in the Morgue, watching Dr. Tom Loman prepare Rebecca Nevins for release to her family.

The M. E. had given Stetler five minutes, to make his farewells, to apologize to the woman he had failed to save.

 _If only I had known what Cal was up to…_

The man had broken into his computers, laid bare his very soul, and _used_ it…used it for material gain…

 _Used it to set me up…_

"Rick…" Horatio Caine joined him as they both stared down at Rebecca Nevins' body.

"She didn't deserve this," Stetler spoke softly. "He chose her to die."

"But, he wasn't the one who killed her," Caine looked at him. "Ryan Wolfe just found the killer, and Eli Cuthbert was right after all. One of my CSIs, Samantha Owens…"

Somehow, that only made things worse…

"Rick…" Caine was looking at him, blue eyes searching…for what, Stetler had no clue…

"The last few days have been rough on you," he finally said. "Let's get you home…"

Only now was it beginning to catch up with him.

Stetler had been cleared, his innocence proven; but…

"They took my badge, Horatio."

"I know…" he heard Caine's sigh. "We'll figure out what to do, tomorrow. For now, you need rest."

"Yeah…" Stetler rubbed his face, feeling the stubble.

"Let's go, Rick. Want to stop for a pizza on the way?"

"A… _pizza?"_

"You know…" Caine tossed Stetler's suit jacket over to him. "Cheese…marinara sauce…mushrooms…sometimes anchovies…"

"A pizza…" Stetler slipped his suit jacket on.

"Yeah…" he finally said. "Let's do that…"

The two men left the Morgue. Dr. Loman, for his part, gently slid Rebecca Nevins into her compartment, where she would be safe until her family came…


	7. Epilogue

Circle, Full Circle

Epilogue

 _Two weeks later_

Rick Stetler felt odd, wearing a Visitors Tag as he walked down the halls of the building he knew so well…

Cal McGuire had hacked into Stetler's computers, stolen files and documents, and used them to frame Stetler…

Had it not been for Horatio Caine, and his team, McGuire might have succeeded.

Stetler could have spent the rest of his life in prison, for things he hadn't done.

But, thanks to Caine, McGuire's bid for power had backfired. Now, _he_ was in jail, facing life in prison, and Rick Stetler was free…

Stetler had not, however, emerged from this completely unscathed…

They had taken his badge. His career in Law Enforcement was over.

Horatio Caine had called him earlier in the day.

 _Meet me at Captain Roth's office,_ he had said.

So, here Rick Stetler was, dressed in his usual suit and tie, standing just outside Captain Roth's door. He took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and knocked on the door.

"Come on in…"

Feeling almost shy, Rick Stetler let himself in, closing the door behind him. He hadn't felt this uncertain of himself in ages. Not since returning to work after his near-fatal shooting back in Eighty-nine.

Captain Roth was sitting at his desk, an open folder in front of him. Horatio Caine was there too, standing by a window, the late-morning sun making a fiery halo of his hair.

Roth was looking at the open folder on his desk.

 _My files…_ Stetler realized, _my entire life and work history…_

"I've reviewed your Reinstatement Request," he said. "And I've accepted it… _provisionally._ There will be _two_ conditions attendant upon this."

"Yes," Stetler nodded. Right now, he would have done _anything_ to get his job back. Roth nodded too…

"First," he said. "You will _not_ be assigned to the Internal Affairs Bureau. Eli Cuthbert has made it clear that he will not accept your presence there in any way whatsoever. As far as he is concerned, you're tainted now…damaged goods…and that's where Horatio comes in…"

Totally confused, Stetler turned to Horatio Caine.

"Horatio?"

Caine smiled.

"If you accept the offer, Rick," he said. "You'll be assigned to my team; as a CSI. You have enough Forensics experience to qualify."

"A…CSI…" Stetler had to sit down.

"What about your people?" he finally asked. "I doubt they'd be happy having me working with them."

"You'd be surprised," Caine was still smiling. "They know you saved Tim Speedle; and they know other things about you now that they didn't before; that you were willing to risk your reputation and career to keep Ryan Wolfe from being arrested, that you tried to save Rebecca Nevins. If you're willing to join us, they're willing to have you with us. It's that simple. So…what do you say, Rick?"

"I…" Stetler bowed his head, closed his eyes for a second.

"I…don't know what to say…" he finally admitted.

"Say _yes,"_ Caine urged. "You have a lot to bring to the table. You'll make a valuable member of the team."

Stetler nodded shakily.

"Yeah…" he couldn't keep the tremor out of his voice. "I accept…"

Two deep, calming breaths later, he brought his attention back to Captain Roth.

"You said there were _two_ conditions…"

"Yes," Roth nodded. "You will also be required to attend Mandatory therapeutic sessions with an appointed psychiatrist. You've had more than your share of trauma-both physical and mental-over these last several years; a Near-Death experience in Eighty-nine, and betrayal by one of your co-workers, a man you used to trust. Further, there is that journal you wrote of your dream while clinically dead. So…you've been under an incredible amount of stress lately, and it's no surprise that you cracked under it all. As an example, I'm told you physically assaulted Cal McGuire…"

Stetler sighed.

"I don't really remember it…"

It had felt like being caught up by a tornado; his only clear memory had been of Horatio Caine hauling him away. Everything else was gone, washed away by a perfect storm of fury…

"Dr. Bradford thinks you experienced a mini-breakdown," there was compassion in Captain Roth's eyes and voice. "You'll see her once a week, every week. Understand this, Rick…your assignment to the CSI Unit is strictly provisional. You start missing your appointments with Dr. Bradford, or if she thinks you're going off the rails, your employment with us _will_ be terminated. Permanently. Are we clear on this?"

"Like crystal," Stetler said.

"Good," Roth stood. "Say hello to your new boss…"

He left the room, and now it was just Rick Stetler and Horatio Caine. Stetler stood too, feeling awkward.

"Horatio…" he began.

"You'll be fine," Caine was smiling. "Now…if you'll accept some sartorial advice…"

His blue eyes were twinkling as he surveyed Stetler.

"As a CSI, Rick," he continued. "You will often find yourself ankle-deep, or more, in… _evidence_. Dress accordingly."

Stetler looked down at his current attire.

"Not appropriate?"

"Not for field work…no," Caine said. "Denim, corduroy, and good solid work boots are best. Trust me on this, Rick…experience talking here."

"Okay…"Stetler nodded. "When do you want me to start?"

"Tomorrow," Caine said. "If you're up to it."

Stetler couldn't fight off the grin.

"I'll be there," he said. "See you tomorrow?"

"Bright and early, Rick" Horatio Caine was grinning too. "Bright and early…"

 _fin_


End file.
